This invention relates to apparatus for enabling player and reproducing pianos to serve and to strike the hour as musical clocks. More particularly, this invention relates to such an apparatus for use on a player piano without physical alteration of the piano.
A reproducing piano is known which was originally engineered to strike the hours and play music before each strike, or after each strike, or both, thereby serving the same function as a musical clock. The reproducing piano had an apparatus which contained a synchronous clock motor; the piano was automatically started every hour on the hour, and, using the piano roll, would strike special chords. The chords sounded like chimes and additional music appropriate to each hour was played. The piano was operated by a specially fabricated perforated paper roll which had a long hole at the edge of the roll for shutting off the piano. The piano contained a special mechanism to distinguish this long hole from shorter holes placed at the same position on the roll for controlling expression, and to switch off the power. Pianos of this kind are available today, but only as antiques.
Many antique electric player and reproducing pianos exist today which do not have the built-in capabilities, described above, to respond to the special piano roll to strike the hour. The normal reproducing piano does not have the special mechanism, and the player piano does not have the tracker bar holes needed for controlling expression.
The purpose of the present invention is to make it possible for nearly any reproducing or electric player piano (both hereinafter referred to as player piano) to serve as a musical clock without significant structural alteration of the piano. In this way, permanent alteration of the piano which, in the case of antiques, would be likely to reduce the value of the instrument, is avoided.